Answers to our most frequently asked questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Below you will find a selection of our most frequently asked questions, providing you with detailed information about us. If you can't find an answer to your own question, just get in touch with our team, we're always happy the help!

General Questions

How can my business save money by outsourcing to Axon?

We know that unpredictable IT costs can place a real burden on your business. By outsourcing your IT to Axon, one monthly cost will give you the predictability you need to effectively manage your budgets. With no unexpected upgrades or operation costs we offer you the flexibility to choose a level of support that fits your budget and requirements enabling you to redirect IT resources, reduce unanticipated support costs and plan your budgets accurately.

What if my business already has IT staff?

Several of our customers already employ an IT manager. By outsourcing your IT to us, we help by eliminating the need for your IT staff to work on low-level, repetitive tasks, freeing up resource to focus on long-term strategic technology objectives. These could include:

Intranet portal services for employees

Line of business applications

Employee technical training

Database development and management

Website development and management

Aligning IT goals with long-term vision of the management team

Professional training and certifications

In short, we provide a solid foundation that allows your business to maximise any current in-house IT investment. To find out more get in touch today.

Do you work weekends?

Our core support hours are Monday-Friday 9am-5pm, however out of hours and weekend support is available and can be arranged upon request.

Technical Support

How do you support customers?

Customers can contact us by phone, email, Skype or social media and have access to their own support portal. If you email or call us, you will usually speak to a skilled engineer immediately. We don’t employ helpdesk staff who just take calls and pass them on.

As well as telephone support, we use remote control software tools that allow us to resolve problems on your computers quickly and without losing time in travelling. However, we won’t hesitate to come out to site if a problem can be best solved that way. And we like to have face-to-face meetings so we can sit down and discuss your on-going plans - you tell us what you want to be able to do, and we can help you develop a plan to suit your business and budget.

Do we need an internet connection?

Yes in order for us to provide, and for you to access our managed support service we will need you to have an internet connection with a static IP address. If you don’t have one, we can install broadband for you – get in touch with us here.

Other IT support companies say they need to be on-site – why don’t you?

We do need to be on-site sometimes – but not very often. Our remote control software tools enable us to connect to your PCs from our office, solving 85% of customer issues without having to travel to site. There are a couple of reasons why other suppliers may say they need to be on-site frequently - to justify their expensive bills, or because they are too small to make the investment in remote software that would enable them to deliver a better value online service to you.

Do we need licenses for our software?

Yes - using copied software or software without licenses is illegal and can result in serious penalties. We only supply licensed software and urge any professional business to ensure all of their software is genuine and properly licensed.

Cloud Services

What is Microsoft Dynamics 365 Online?

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Online is a customer relationship management solution hosted in the Microsoft cloud. Accessible to users from anywhere with an internet connection, Dynamics 365 allows sales, marketing and customer service teams to collaborate from anywhere, providing businesses with the tools to develop better relationships, close deals faster, and drive more profitable sales.

Key benefits include:

Integrated engagement with social tools including social listening capabilities

Process automation to ensure salespeople are focused on selling through proven processes

Data visualisation to make it easy to understand the state of the business and each account

Mobile access so salespeople always have access to their tools and teams

What is Microsoft SharePoint Online?

Microsoft SharePoint Online is a collaboration software application that is used for document management and sharing, and is accessible from the cloud.

SharePoint Online can be tailored through development to suit a business’ individual requirements, enabling teams to access company data from any location – either online or offline – with features such as document-level security settings, co-editing and centralised admin management giving businesses control over their data, with the security of the Microsoft cloud.

What is Microsoft Office 365?

Microsoft Office 365 is subscription based cloud computing from Microsoft. It brings users the latest versions of the Microsoft Office applications and business-class email, with the power of the cloud and associated benefits of cloud computing.

What is Microsoft Azure?

Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing platform that enables businesses to manage applications and services through a global network of Microsoft data centres.

Applications and services can be built, deployed and managed through Microsoft Azure to provide businesses of all sizes with enterprise level cloud computing, comprising a combination of SaaS (Software as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a Service), and IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) to bring better operational agility, full scalability, and the security of the Microsoft cloud.

What is Yammer?

Yammer is a private social network from Microsoft which is designed for business.

Think of it as Facebook, for business. With newsfeeds, groups, instant messaging and private messages, it lets teams work together, no matter where they are – sharing ideas, keeping updated and communicating.

What is Skype for Business?

Formerly known as Lync, Skype for Business is a real-time communication tool that allows businesses to collaborate either internally, or with customers and suppliers.

Features include instant messaging, audio and video calling, online meetings, live web conferencing, screen sharing and virtual whiteboards. It means that communication is instant, and helps keep email exchanges and unnecessary face-to-face meetings to a minimum. Users can interact from any location with an internet connection, increasing business mobility, responsiveness and flexibility.

What is Microsoft Intune?

Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based mobile device management tool. It enables IT departments to manage employees’ devices from the cloud, maintaining malware security updates and patches, managing policies, firewall settings and data encryption – all through one portal which is accessible from anywhere via the Microsoft cloud.

What is private cloud?

Private cloud computing is a cloud platform that is operated exclusively for one business and implemented within the company firewall. IT is best utilised for companies that need to host line of business applications in the cloud – which may not be available as a cloud based app, or companies that require dedicated cloud servers.

What is public cloud?

A public cloud computing solution is one in which your data is hosted in the cloud and made available to you over the internet.

Public cloud solutions are fast to deploy, quickly scaled up or down and offer zero wasted resource. Public cloud is a hassle-free way to access your data and apps, and is paid for on-demand.

What is hybrid cloud?

Hybrid cloud computing is a combination of physical or virtual servers and/or a public cloud solution. It provides a good option for businesses that need a combination of private and public cloud – for example using Microsoft Office 365 while hosting line of business applications privately. It allows businesses to use multiple providers if risk mitigation is a requirement and is often the best solution for companies that want to shift their entire infrastructure into a virtual environment.

What is VoIP?

VoIP stands for Voice Over Internet Protocol. It is a technology which delivers voice data over the internet. It enables companies to make and receive telephone calls via their main business number, from anywhere with an internet connection.

This brings flexibility to a business comms system, offering lower call charges, increased scalability and provision for disaster recovery and business continuity.

One size fits all? Never.

Great technology is tailored to meet unique business goals. Sign up for our free IT audit and find out whether cloud computing could make a difference to your organisation.

Request your free IT Audit

Don’t worry, we will never share your details with anyone else.

About us

We’re Axon, and we love technology. We were founded in 2001 as a single-source IT solutions company, and in 2011 we werereborn in the cloud. In fact, we were the first company in the North West to achieve aMicrosoft Gold Cloud Competency.